WASH Agency Credited for Helping Zambia
Published on by Water Network Research, Official research team of The Water Network in Non Profit
Notable Achievement in the Water and Sanitation Sector Establishment of a Regulatory Agency, National Water Supply and Sanitation Council
NWASCO is credited for substantially improving the availability of information on water and sanitation service provision in towns and cities.
The body is also responsible for the establishment of a devolution trust fund to focus donor support on poor townships, as well as an increase in access to water supply in the rural areas.
It is largely because of these initiatives that Local Government and Housing Permanent Secretary Stanford Mschili said the water supply coverage in the country had increased to 67 per cent in the rural areas and 87 per cent in urban areas. This is an increase from the 2010 levels when NWASCO and the United Nations put the figures at 46 per cent for rural and 78 for urban areas.
Despite these achievements, however, challenges remain, among which is erratic water supply in many urban settlements, which water utility firms blame on the low rate of cost recovery even where water tariffs have been increasing. This leads to yet other challenges, and these include insufficient progress in increasing access to sanitation and a high level of non-revenue water in urban areas. Meanwhile, reports from rural areas indicate a high rate of non-functioning rural water systems (especially manual pumps), and insufficient investment levels despite substantial foreign aid.
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- Heath & Safety
- Sanitation & Hygiene